+++
title = "Bucket Fishing"
date = "2020-02-02"
description = "Rules for a field game from summer camp."
+++


About
=====

At Camp K in 2000 I made up four games that all belonged to a family of
hide-and-seek games. I gave it the code name bucket fishing. The
original game came from an activity class that Tracker and I had during
Pirate Week. We used toys and play structures such as action figures and
sand castles with twigs and old man\'s beard. The next summer Polliwog,
Quan, and I adapted those rules for people during a cookout at the
Outpost. We intended it to replace the existing, local version of
kick-the-can and gave it a name after a popular video game. But I
quickly realized that in order to truly keep in the spirit of stealth, I
needed to give it a new name that I could write down in plain text.
Hence forth, all my create-some-fun sessions would have the words
\"bucket fishing\".

Mines Mode
----------

In mines, players needed to get from point A to B and then take the
MacGuffin back to A. Or just get to B to disarm the it-person for
shorter games. The it-person would mark places where if someone stepped
they would lose and go back to the beginning.

Turret Mode
-----------

In this version, players needed to get from point A to B. Usually we
played this in the open field hiding in plain sight. The it-person lies
down on the ground so even the slightest hill or tall grass can give
players some cover. The it-person closes their eyes and yells out
\"Shields down!\" to signal to the players they can move around in the
open. After closing their eyes, the it-person counts down \"Five, four,
three, two, one, shields up!\" and then opens their eyes back up. The
it-person calls out anyone they can see. With smaller groups they must
say the person\'s name. Otherwise just a description such as \"You in
the red hat!\" calls the player out. In harder games, anyone they can
hear.

### Variations

-   In the true \"bucket fishing\" variation, players start with an
    empty bucket, fill it with water, and then dump it on the it-person
    instead of just getting to point B.
-   In \"tank mode\" the it-person can crawl around and open their eyes
    to avoid tripping while counting down. But they must stop and have
    their eyes closed again by the time they say \"Shields up!\" before
    opening their eyes again.
